Chapter 25

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

S ounds Like a Plan

Finn

I told Charlie it’s best we take a drive to discuss this whole investigation. It’s impossible to have real privacy in the house when the walls are so thin, which each of us knows all too well. When one of us brings a female back to our rooms, the whole house can hear what is going on behind a closed door.

“Where are you? I can pick you up,” I offer Charlie on the phone. She just finished a class on campus, and she has a couple of hours until her next lecture.

“I’m heading to the house to meet you. I’m on Brock Street,” she says.

“I’ll just come to pick you up,” I offer.

She agrees and we end the call. The smart thing for me to do would be to never speak to her or see her again, but that doesn’t feel like a real option at this point. One, she is living in the same house as me. Two, the guys are obsessed with her. Three, she has made me feel things I haven’t felt in a long time. Things are different with her than they were with Chelsea. I don’t know if it’s because we are older and mature, or the fact that Charlie doesn’t do careless things. Although, us hooking up in Ohio was careless but it was because we both can’t seem to get enough of each other, which is new for me.

I pull up beside her, the leaves are blowing around and her hair is in her face. She gets into the car and blows out a breath. “It’s getting cold out there,” she notes, holding her backpack in her lap.

“Here, you can put it in the back seat.” I take it from her and place it in the back. Then I turn up the heat.

“Thanks,” she says, placing her hands in front of the vents.

I drive off to nowhere in particular. I just head in the opposite direction of Riverside U.

“Finn, I’m so sorry for dragging you into this mess with Raph. I feel like it’s all my fault, and now your position on the team is in danger. I want you to know I won’t let your position be compromised. I’m going to tell my supervisor I quit the internship. It will solve this whole problem.”

I pull off to the side of the road and look at Charlie. Her perfect heart-shaped lips, the glow in her emerald eyes, this girl is so selfless it’s unnerving.

“Charlie, you didn’t force me to help you that night. You sure as hell weren’t holding a gun to me when I took you to the beach.” I snicker. “You need the money from the internship. This whole situation is bullshit. Someone needs to have a talk with Raphael and explain to him you guys are over and he needs to move on.”

“I can find another job to make money,” she retorts.

“You know it won’t be the same,” I reply. “I appreciate you wanting to take the fall but it isn’t happening. I told the guys we hooked up, or rather, they put two and two together because I’ve never been late for a hockey practice before.”

She winces. “Sorry about running off on you like that but we really didn’t know each other, and I never had a one-night stand before.”

“I get it. I’m not blaming you. Being late was on me and the fact I had such a good time that night I was worn out,” I say with a crooked grin.

“You did?” Her green eyes are so round. She looks like she can’t believe my words, and why does she have to be so pretty?

“Yeah, Charlie, I think that was the reason I was so angry because I didn’t understand why I was feeling the way I did,” I confess, feeling bad about being such a moody jerk to her at the beginning.

“I felt it too, Finn. It made no sense. I was with Raph for seven months and he never made me feel the way you do.”

“We are essentially fucked because I don’t want to walk away from this. But I also told the guys I won’t do anything to jeopardize the team. We have a shot at the Frozen Four this year. I can’t let them down,” I explain.

“That’s why it’s best for me to quit the internship,” she repeats.

“That’s crazy talk,” I counter.

“No, I’ve checked the university’s non-fraternization policy. I’m an employee and I am advising you who is a student on social media. There was a section that spoke about a pre-existing relationship, but we had to come forward right away and notify the university, and then I would be expected to step down from my position. It’s the only way, Finn.”

“Where would it leave you?” I ask.

“I’d have to come back next year. I still need to complete an internship, which takes up a full semester to complete my degree,” she explains.

“I’m not letting you quit, Charlie, it isn’t fair. We are in this together. Both of us have a lot to lose,” I tell her. “I think we should just be friends right now. I’ll have to resist wanting to kiss the hell out of you or running my hands under those cute skirts you wear.” My eyes drift to her legs. She is wearing stockings now that the weather is cooler, but she still looks hot as hell.

She shifts in her seat. “Am I making you wet?” I ask then blink. “Damn. Do not answer that.”

Charlie laughs. “I want you too, Finn, but you’re right, we both have a lot to lose. Staying away from each other is for the best.”

“I want us to be friends though,” I blurt.

“You can’t be serious.” She laughs.

“I’m dead serious. I like you as a person. This isn’t just about sex for me.”

“Whoa! I did not take you for a romantic, Finn Heaton.”

“I used to be, until I wasn’t. I swore off relationships for good reason but there is something about you,” I mutter, and I reach over and tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. “You’re caring and you think of everyone else before you think of yourself, and you’re gorgeous and your eyes. . .” I look into them and become fixated, my lips aching to touch her.

I watch the startled, or maybe intrigued, look on her face, she is breathing fast and she looks almost nervous.

“You’re a good person too, Finn. I still can’t believe you went back to Buffalo with me. That was insane. Like when I think back it almost feels like a dream. You have such a big heart for a jock.” She laughs.

“What is it with you and jocks? You have to tell me,” I insist.

She nods. “Dad was a basketball player in college. He was on an NCAA Division 1 team. He got my mom pregnant, and they were together for a bit before she took off. Dad ended up getting injured and it ended his career. He got depressed. My mom left and never looked back. Dad raised me on his own. It wasn’t always easy for us, but he did the best he could. When I was old enough to take interest in boys, he made me promise to stay away from jocks. As I got older, I began to think maybe he saw himself as the reason Mom left, or maybe he wasn’t the best to her, I don’t know. It was a sore subject and I kind of respected his boundaries.”

“That sounds tough,” I say reaching out and caressing her hand.

“Is that a good idea?” she asks and I am confused. “I mean, just your touch makes me want to reach out and. . .”

I drop her hand and lean back on my seat, resting my head against the headrest.

“I know what you mean.” I sigh. “But to clarify, not all jocks are bad. My sister married a hockey player and he’s a really good guy.”

“You’re a good guy too, Finn.” She cups the side of my cheek. “The way you’ve been looking out for me. You didn’t have to do that.”

“I wanted to.” I swallow. “I don’t want to stay away from you, but like I said, the team is important to me. I’m their captain. I won’t let them down.”

“You’re a stand-up guy.” She smiles warmly.

“Where is that getting me now?” I ask.

“We will stay friends. My internship ends in December. It’s just over two months away. We keep a professional distance and hope the Dean’s investigation doesn’t lead to any proof that we hooked up at any point,” she says.

“My housemates know about that night, but they don’t know about Ohio,” I tell her. “Although, Aaron was disappointed.”

“Ouch.” Charlie winces. “Aaron’s a good guy. They are all good guys. I really do feel bad about putting them in a situation where they have to lie.”

“I know what you mean. It isn’t my style either, but it’s hard to give up on everything you’ve worked for. I don’t feel right asking you to walk away when I don’t want to either,” I say. This whole situation is a clusterfuck. We lose, no matter what. We are either shitty people who lie or we lose a future we both worked hard for. I know Charlie can come back and finish school, but if I make myself a bad name the NHL will blacklist me.

“So, we are friends then,” she confirms.

I reach out to shake her hand. “Friends.”

“Maybe we can cook a meal together sometime. You know hang out,” I suggest.

“That sounds like a plan, Finn.”